A folding apparatus is known from WO 00/56652 A1. This folding apparatus is comprised of a superstructure, in which paper webs, which are fed in from one or from several printing groups, are brought together, perhaps after having been longitudinally cut and are placed on top of each other. The folding apparatus also consists of at least one former, in which a continuous strand of one web or of several brought-together paper webs is longitudinally folded in the superstructure. A transverse cutting device, in which the longitudinally folded web is cut into individual products, is also provided in the folding apparatus. Often, the transverse cutting device is realized by the provision of a rotating cutter cylinder, whose cutters work together with a thrust element on a gripper or folding blade cylinder, for severing the continuous web. The grippers of this gripper or folding blade cylinder maintain the products, which have been cut apart by the transverse cutting device, fixed to the surface of the cylinder and convey them to a transfer gap between the folding blade cylinder and a folding jaw cylinder. A folding blade then extends out of the folding blade cylinder to introduce the product held on the folding blade cylinder along a center transverse line into a folding jaw of the folding jaw cylinder and to fold it transversely in this way.
To draw a paper web, for the first time, into a printing press, it is known, from EP 0 553 740 B1, to use a holding element in the form of a rail-guided chain link element. A leading edge of the web, which is to be drawn in, and which has been torn off obliquely, is fastened to this chain link element. The guide rail extends next to the intended path of the web through the printing press as far as the superstructure of a folding apparatus.
The web is taken over by a draw-in device which is in the form of two spike-covered belts, as is described in connection with the already mentioned WO 00/56652 A1. The spikes of the belt spear the web along its lateral edges and pull it over an insertion roller at the upper edge of the former, as well as over the former itself.
Since pulling elements, which are independent of the guide rail and of the holding element conducted on it, are provided on the former, it is accomplished that, in accordance with the respective width of the webs to be processed, the former can be displaced in such a way that a web, which was folded on the former, enters the transverse cutting device exactly in the center. This is of importance for an interference-free functioning of the transverse cutting device, and, in particular, for the proper functioning of a downstream-connected transverse folding device.
DE 42 10 190 A1 discloses a cutting device with an integrated shunt. This device is arranged between draw-in rollers and folding cylinders.
DE 101 28 821 shows a device for bringing paper webs together in the course of their being drawn in.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,125,335 discloses a device for drawing in webs of material by the use of of belts.
EP 0 418 903 A2 describes devices which can be used for drawing in a plurality of web into a rotary web-fed printing press. Tapes that draw in the webs extend from the roll changers to the front of the formers.
A device for producing cut items is known from DE 1 611 283A. Two cutting cylinders are arranged one behind the other.